Gave it all away for nothing
1) He gave all he had away for nothing.
Does this mean:
a) He was generous and he gave all he had away to others and received nothing instead.
or:
b) He gave all he had away for no reason at all and it was pointless. Nobody benefitted from it.
Gratefully,
Navi
Top answer
I could read it either way. Note: benefit - benefited (one t) The reason is that the syllable that is stressed in 'benefited' is not the one ending with 't' so that does not get doubled. It's the reason we write 'referred' but 'referee'.
- I could read it either way.
- Note: benefit - benefited (one t) The reason is that the syllable that is stressed in 'benefited' is not the one ending with 't' so that does not get doubled.
- It's the reason we write 'referred' but 'referee'.
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I could read it either way.
Note: benefit - benefited (one t)
The reason is that the syllable that is stressed in 'benefited' is not the one ending with 't' so that does not get doubled. It's the reason we write 'referred' but 'referee'.
0A bit more elegantly perhaps:
He gave away all he had for nothing.
Your first interpretation came to my mind first, but then I thought "gave" doesn't mean "sold" or "traded", so "for nothing" is redundant. We always give things "for nothing". Even so, the first interpretation works for me.
When I read your second interpretation, I thought that it, too, worked.
0
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